E de mirare - Wonder.

She is standing by the entrance to the fortress's spiral stone staircase that leads down to the basement which hosts a secret torture chamber. Here in the chilling silence of the mountains of Dracula's home, she gives me an enchanting smile, as if welcoming me to a dangerous secret. Her blonde hair drawn to Earth and her eyes sparkle like the green-brown of Saturn. Tired after driving up slopes that often meet the wings of the cliff, the hospitality of my night's host is not felt without a growing fear.
She motions me to follow her down the spirals and into a dark room. I hesitate, my pulse increasing. We walk towards the torture chamber wrapped in red. The room has tall thin windows and the moonlight falls onto a chair. It is cold. I notice her staring at me, taking in my every expression. I smile at her and sign to ask if it's where i'll be spending the night. To the relief of my nerves, she whispers 'Nu'.
Once back up, I attempt to engage Natalia to tell her story to ease my mind. From a small town, she explains to me how she tries to make ends meet. It's a struggle i've seen before, and this enigmatic woman is slowly transforming into someone familiar.
Standing in silence, she hands me a red candle and asks me, almost impulsively, if I would like to go to the midnight mass. I sense the entire village has been anticipating this very midnight for 40 days and 40 nights. Fear in my mind, I still cannot refuse the opportunity to experience the tradition. As we drive down the hill, she does not speak much and has a calmness around her which I secretly find reassuring. Under slow rain, we stand together with the village in an open ground facing a tall church.
The priests form a circle as the chanting grows louder. An hour passes by as fire is shared and parents whisper stories to their kids, kissing them through their stages of sleep and wakefulness. She takes my hand, creeping towards a cabin at the back flickering the ambers of a multitude of candles. As it becomes clear that the dead are loved here, Natalia remembers someone deeply, wandering through space and time as a tear rolls down her Saturn eyes. The chaos in my mind stumbles upon an unexpected moment of peace.
In silence we drive back, moonlight filtering through leaves.
I imagine how my world would feel if I had never left home. Through the fog, I turn on the highway lights and in the near distance i envisage the silhouette of our old fortress. Wonder, I realise is for those with open hearts.